Social Studies Network Meeting: Vermont in the Civil War

Social studies teachers from the southeastern part of the state came together on September 17th for an exciting day of investigation around the Civil War's impact on Vermont. We heard from historian Howard Coffin about his efforts to uncover how Vermonters lives were touched by the war and from reenactor (and teacher) John Swanson about Springfield's first 10 days of the war. We learned about individual soldiers and the people they left behind by examining primary source documents and how to create a Quest from questing "guru" Steve Glazer. The highlight of the day, though, was our trip to the Dummerston Center Cemetery. There we collected data from the graves of soldiers as well as learned how to "read" cemeteries in general.

The feedback about the day was positive and informative:

"Howard Coffin was very inspiring. I want to look for Civil War history in my own town."

"Great cemetery work. It motivates me to do the same in my school community."

"Great mix of speakers, workshops, and field trip to the cemetery."

"The presentations, trip to the cemetery, and activities were 10 on a scale of 10."

Participant feedback also suggested some changes that will be made to the next inservice date (October 22nd at the Danville School). Specifically, we will have a breakout room geared toward elementary teachers.

Thanks very much to Sarah Rooker from the Flow of History project, Julia Lewandoski from the Vermont Humanities Council, Larry Coffin, former teacher at Oxbow and member of the Vermont Old Cemetery Association, and Christine Smith, women's history teacher at Spaulding High School who were all instrumental in making this day happen!

• What would you like to see at the next social studies network meeting?
  
  

Vietnam Field Study Summer 2009

Would you like an opportunity for teachers to enhance instruction of the legacy of the Vietnam War Era? An opportunity for staff to travel to the Republic of Vietnam during the summer of 2009 for academic credit? An opportunity for staff & students to participate in a fund raising campaign to eliminate the risk of unexploded ordnance left behind during the Vietnam War?

Keene State College and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund have authorized a field study for 6 academic graduate credits in the Republic of Vietnam during the summer of 2009. Bill Holiday, teacher at Brattleboro Union High School, will be the instructor. Costs and Dates are being worked out, but dates are likely to be from June 30, 2009 through July 12, 2009.

For more information please contact Bill at Bill_Holiday@wsesu.org.

If the World Were 100 People

If the World were 100 PEOPLE:

50 would be female
50 would be male
20 would be children
There would be 80 adults,
14 of whom would be 65 and older
There would be:
61 Asians
12 Europeans
13 Africans
14 people from the Western Hemisphere
There would be:
31 Christians
21 Muslims
14 Hindus
6 Buddhists
12 people who believe in other religions
16 people who would not be aligned with a religion
17 would speak Chinese
8 would speak Hindustani
8 would speak English
7 would speak Spanish
4 would speak Arabic
4 would speak Russian
52 would speak other languages
82 would be able to read and write; 18 would not
1 would have a college education
1 would own a computer
75 people would have some supply of food and a place to
shelter them from the wind and rain, but 25 would not
1 would be dying of starvation
17 would be undernourished
15 would be overweight
83 would have access to safe drinking water
17 people would have no clean, safe water to drink

• Have you seen this information before? Have you used it in your classroom?
• How can we verify this data....or better yet, how can you have your students verify this data or create their own demograhic snapshot?
• In addition to working with data, what is the bigger understanding here for your students and the world they will and do inhabit? Here are some web-based resources that might be of help answer some of these questions:

U.S. Census Bureau International Database http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/

GeoHive http://www.geohive.com/default1.aspx

Population Reference Bureau http://www.prb.org/

Population Reference Bureau Datafinder http://www.prb.org/datafinder.aspx

The Media, Politics, and American Society at the State House

SAVE THE DATE!

The Bill of Rights Institute is pleased to invite you to apply for a FREE one-day seminar entitled Seeking the Truth: Media, Politics, and American Society. This seminar is for social studies teachers, grades 8-12, and will be held on Thursday, November 6, 2008 at the Vermont State House in Montpelier from 7:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. Complimentary breakfast and lunch will be provided at the seminar.

The evolution of the First Amendment press protections in American history and the use of media in political campaigns is a complex area of study. This seminar provides teachers with tools to address protections afforded to political speech, analyzing sources as varied as Thomas Jefferson and the Federal Communications Act of 1934. The protections afforded political speech and its impact in the media are addressed through the analysis of political images and advertising from previous elections.

At the seminar, you will receive a complimentary copy of our new curriculum, Media and American Democracy , with lesson plans, classroom activities, a glossary of journalism terms, and Landmark Supreme Court Case activities. Participants will also receive a professional development certificate.

Registrations must be completed online by October 16, 2008. You will be notified of your acceptance via email no later than October 21, 2008. To register, please visit: http://www.billofrightsinstitute.org/ApplyOnline. For more information, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page, linked to our registration page.

Constitution Day: Opportunity or Irony?

The idea of Constitution Day might seem paradoxical to many social studies educators: Does reserving a single day in honor of the Constitution actually mitigate its importance by encouraging single-shot, surface-level learning? Furthermore, how can we compel teaching about freedoms that are integral to the lives of every one of us, not just school children? How can (and should) the federal government drive state and/or local school curricula in this manner?

Reflecting on these questions is important when determining what we want our students to understand about the Constitution, their government, and their rights and freedoms as well as how we want to address Constitution Day in our schools. I've made a Constitution Day Planning Guide with the hopes that it can help you provide exciting and relevant educational opportunities to your students throughout the entire school year, not just on September 17th.

The Planning Guide includes the following:
* Programming Ideas: ideas for classroom or school-wide events celebrating the Constitution
* Primary Source Documents and Reading Informational Text Strategies: the U.S. Constitution, the Vermont Constitution, and the Declaration of Independence formatted for student interaction; a glossary for the U.S. Constitution; informational text reading strategies for teachers
* Classroom Resources: resources for teaching about the Constitution and the U.S. government. Grade levels, themes, and types of resources are highlighted.
* Current Events: recent events from the news that focus on student rights and responsibilities

Click here for the guide http://education.vermont.gov/new/html/pgm_curriculum/history.html, then click on Curriculum and Assessment Resources.

• What do you think about the idea of a Constitution Day? Does it hurt or promote learning about the Constitution?

Cartoons for the Classroom

You’ve got to love editorial cartoons and the critical thinking skills they can enhance in us and develop in our students, especially during this election season. The Association of American Editorial Cartoonists’ web site has a section called “Cartoons in the Classroom” that contains these useful amenities:
*A weekly lesson
*Blank cartoons
*Cartoon evaluation worksheet
*128 archived cartoon-related lessons
*Links to addition editorial cartoon web sites

Click here to check it out: http://nieonline.com/aaec/cftc.cfm

• What suggestions do you have for using editorial cartoons in your classroom?
• How do you assess the use and creation of editorial cartoons?
• Do you have any good resources to share?

Image courtesy of UnionLeader.com

What Did You Do This Summer?

It seems like summer is usually about two things that are potentially polar opposites: vacation and professional development. One relaxing and fun-filled, the other full of work and deadlines. Or so I thought...

I'm happy to say that I had the opportunity to participate in some really great professional development this summer. The Vermont Geographic Alliance's 2008 Summer Institute for Educators managed to combine intense and eye-opening content with collegiality and fun. On more than one occassion I thought to myself, "Every Vermont student should be learning about this." Current geographic issues are some of the most pressing our world is facing today. Learning about these, and learning to use up-to-date geographic technology are crucial ways to assure that our kids are ready to be citizens of the 21st century.

Some of the interesting things we learned about were:

*Google Maps
*Google Earth
*The Gap Minder (a very interesting web site that takes current geographic data and makes it visible for you and your students) http://www.gapminder.org/
*GPS
*Geocaching
*Geography-centered literature at the elementary level
*Geography lessons at the elementary level
*Vermont's topography
*Resources from the Fleming Museum
*New curriculum from National Geographic being piloted by Vermont teachers
*The America Over There: A Look at Contemporary American Colonies and Overseas Military
*Migration to the U.S.
*Illegal immigration in Vermont, the human conditions it creates, and its importance to Vermont's agricultural economy
*Arctic melting
*Historical geography of Vermont

Let me know if you would like any more information on the above topics. And please consider applying for VGA's summer institute next year!

• Did you participate in any good professional development this summer that you would like to recommend to your colleagues? Use this blog as a forum for sharing this information.

Coping with Rising Gas Prices

Got any field trips planned this year? If your answer is no, you're not alone.

In addition to a recent Times Argus article "Schools look at trimming extracurricular activities", other headlines ("Gas prices fuel rise in virtual field trips ," "School field trips in jeopardy as fuel prices rise") don't bode well for Vermont's students getting out of the classroom much in the coming year.

How are you planning on coping with these new economic realities?

Here are some tips and/or examples:
*CILC http://www.cilc.org/
*The Smithsonian Institution http://www.si.edu/
*The Louvre http://www.louvre.fr/llv/musee/visite_virtuelle.jsp?bmLocale=en
*The Metropolitan Museum of Art http://www.metmuseum.org/Works_of_Art/features.asp
*National Park Service http://www.nps.gov/learn/distance.htm
*The National Zoo http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/WorldTour/
*The Tomb of Tutankhamen http://www.nationalgeographic.com/egypt/index.html

There are thousands of other examples. You might find some of relevance on my del.icio.us page or under the Curriculum and Assessments section of my DOE web page (http://education.vermont.gov/new/html/pgm_curriculum/history.html).

• What sites have you found that can be used to create a good virtual field trip?